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PROFIT SHARING UPDATE
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NEGOTIATIONS UPDATE
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AFA Local Numbers
Dear Members,
PROFIT SHARING UPDATE
The Union has received a preliminary report from the Company containing the list
of eligible participants, total Flight Attendants earnings for 2006 and the
percentage of the total earnings for each participant. We will review the data
and report any variances to the Company for correction. Below are several
questions (and the answers) that have been asked by members:
Q- Will Union dues or any other assessment to AFA, be deducted from the
check?
A- No. The only deductions are for federal, state and local taxes.
Q - Does seniority have anything to do with the amount of the check?
A- No. Seniority has nothing to do with the amount of profit sharing each Flight
Attendant will receive. The formula for distribution is based on each Flight
Attendants earnings for 2006. Each Flight Attendant's taxable and non taxable
income (i.e. 401k deductions, Flexible Spending Account deductions) income is
expressed as a percentage of the total Flight Attendant earnings. That
percentage is then multiplied into the total amount of the profit sharing
allocated to AFA.
Q- How much of the 58 million dollar profit sharing pool is allocated to AFA?
A- $8,510,870.10
Q- What was the total amount of Flight Attendant earnings for 2006?
A- $247,314,218.78
Q-Are people who resigned or were terminated in 2006 and had earnings
eligible?
A- No. The terms of the plan (as approved by the bankruptcy court) limit the
participants to those employees who were active on December 31, 2006. Active is
defined as having a continued employer relationship.
Q- Are members who had earned income in 2006 who resigned or were terminated
in 2007 prior to the pay out eligible?
A - Yes
Q- Are members who were on an approved Leave of Absence (i.e. medical,
personal, educational, military) on December 31, 2006 eligible?
A- Yes. Members on an approved leave who maintained a continued employer
relationship through 2006 will receive profit sharing if they received earned
income from US Airways during 2006.
Q- Are members who retired or furloughed in 2006 eligible?
A- Yes. The terms of the plan allow each Union the discretion to include members
who retired or were furloughed in 2006. The MEC decided in September 2006 to
include members who retired or were awarded a VFLR in 2006.
Q- Are members who were recalled in June 2006 eligible?
A - Yes, as long as they had earned income in 2006 and were considered active on
December 2006 as defined above.
Q- Are members who worked for Mid Atlantic eligible?
A- Yes.
Q- When will the profit sharing be distributed?
A- In order for the Company to comply with IRS regulations the Company must cut
the checks by March 15 or face tax liabilities. CEO Doug Parker told Union
leaders the checks would be cut by March 15.
NEGOTIATIONS UPDATE
The Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) and the Company met in session on Feb
20-22. The JNC passed proposals to the Company on Section 21, Training and
Section 19, Reduction in Personnel. The JNC also passed a TDY proposal.
Training - Both the JNC and Company proposals contain language
limiting the combination of travel to training, training and return travel to
domicile to 16 hours. Any combination that exceeds 16 hours would necessitate a
day of travel prior to or following training. Both proposals contain 3 hours
pay/credit for training. The AFA proposal contains a provision for the Flight
Attendant to receive 3 hours pay/no credit for all training and travel at the
Flight Attendants option. Both proposals provide for 3 hours pay/credit for the
day of travel, however the AFA proposal would provide for the greater of the
deadhead or the 3 hours pay. The major dispute in Training regards the method
for recurrent training. The FAA requires that recurrent training be two eight
hour periods with only one period designated as hands on at the training center.
The other period can be done as home study. The Company wants to replace the
current USA home study method with quarterly computer based training currently
in practice by the West. As proposed, the JNC has no interest in switching to
CBT training as a component of Recurrent Training. The Company also does not
want to address our proposal that would require the Company to maintain Training
Centers both east and west of the Mississippi as long as there are domiciles
both east and west of the Mississippi. We do not want one training center as
that would require even more travel than is currently practiced.
Reduction In Personnel - This section is almost completely agreed to and
largely follows the East contract. The major differences regard pass travel for
members who accept a voluntarily furlough, VSIP or are involuntarily furloughed.
We have proposed the current pass travel benefits for both voluntary furloughs
and VSIP and pass benefits for the duration of an involuntarily furlough. The
Company will not address our voluntary furlough and VSIP language and wants to
limit passes to twelve months for an involuntarily furloughed Flight Attendant.
TDY - Our proposal is again modeled off of the East Contract. The
proposal is seeking to modify TDY in the following way:
- Eliminate the ability for the Company to assign TDY more than twice if
all Reserves have been previously assigned TDY for two months in a twelve
month period. While this has never happened, the current contract language
gives the Company the ability to use TDY rather than balance the bases.
- Allow for Reserves who have vacation to accept, but not be assigned, a
TDY vacancy if the vacation is contained in or overlaps the TDY period. The
vacation would be forfeited except for pay and credit.
- Limit the TDY period to strictly one or two week periods or an entire bid
month. For example, the Company awards a one week TDY. In reality that could
actually mean the period could be as much as eleven days as the Company could
require a deadhead the day prior to the TDY period and assign a four-day trip
on day seven of the TDY period. We believe this violates the provision that
increases the Reserve guarantee by 5+00 hours for a one week TDY. The Company
can't have it both ways.
In general the biggest complaint I am hearing from members is the length of
time the process is taking. The reason is simple- the two contracts contain
significant differences and neither contract provides the quality of life,
compensation, benefits, scheduling and reserve systems that we deserve. In
essence this contract needs to be about change-and change for the better. The
Company has their agenda and we have ours. The two agendas are so far apart a
swift and easy process is not possible. It is the intent of the JNC to negotiate
as many beneficial changes as possible. The Company's intent is to keep the cost
of the contract and the cost of implementing it as low as possible. The two
competing philosophies contribute to the amount of time spent on each contract
section, line and word. We will continue this methodical approach and only
conclude when we have achieved our goal of a contract that meets the needs of
our membership. As I have said before, this merger allows us the ability to open
our current contract. Absent the merger, our current contract would be in effect
until 2012 and in reality beyond that due to the Section 6 process.
In addition, I would like to again make you aware of the members of the JNC and
why they are on the committee. A merger between carriers triggers a single
agreement negotiation process. That process is governed by the AFA Constitution
and Bylaws (C&B). The C&B mandates the committee include the MEC Presidents from
both carriers and one additional negotiator from each carrier's membership. The
JNC is made of up of myself, AWA MEC President Gary Richardson, USA MEC
Scheduling Chairperson Carol Austin and AWA MEC Government Affairs Chairperson,
Nicki Kirkeby. Ms. Kirkeby replaced former AWA MEC Vice President, Bill
McGlashen when Mr. McGlashen was appointed assistant to AFA International
President Pat Friend last month.
The question of why AFA does not use "professional negotiators" always seems to
come up during any contract negotiations. The answer is - we do. The JNC also
includes AFA staff members Clare Burt and Joe Burns. Ms. Burt has worked for AFA
for more than 25 years as a staff negotiator and is currently the manager of the
Collective Bargaining department. Mr. Burns has worked for AFA for more than 6
years and is currently a Senior Staff Negotiator. Mr. Burns is also an attorney.
I believe we do have the most professional negotiators in the business working
alongside us.
The members of the JNC are aware of all of your concerns and needs. We rely on
the respective MEC members for information that you provide to them. The JNC
also receives information from the various MEC committee members regarding your
concerns and needs.
We are not in the business of negotiating a contract that only changes things
for certain groups. We are in this for all of you and will continue to work to
provide you the contract you deserve.
Thank you,
Mike Flores, President
The US Airways Master Executive Council
AFA-CWA
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AFA Local Numbers
Council 40 PIT 724-695-3329
Council 41 DCA 703-212-8090
Council 69 BOS 781-289-8454
Council 70 PHL 215-492-0840
Council 82 LGA 315-736-3483
Council 89 CLT 704-527-0325
New Hotline Number Toll Free: 866-USA-AFA2
US AIRWAYS Benefits Information 800-872-4780
Reply to Inflight: askinflight@usairways.com
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